Memorial planned for filmmaker John Singleton

LOS ANGELES — A public memorial service for
filmmaker John Singleton is in the planning stages, a family representative
said this week.

“The family is planning a larger memorial for
John in a few weeks to celebrate his life,” the representative said.

The announcement came following a private funeral
service May 6 for Singleton, best known for his debut film, the South Los
Angeles drama “Boyz n the Hood.”

Singleton died April 29 at age 51 at Cedars-Sinai
Medical Center. He had gone to the hospital
complaining of leg pain and suffered a massive stroke on April 17. His family
made the “agonizing decision” to remove him from life support 12 days later.

According to the family representative, the
funeral service was a very small, intimate goodbye for family and very close
friends that was not open to the public or media.

No further details were released.

TMZ.com reported that the service was held at Angelus Funeral Home in the Crenshaw
district, followed by interment at Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills.

Singleton, who also directed “Poetic Justice,” “Higher
Learning,” “2 Fast 2 Furious” and the 2000 remake of “Shaft,” grew up in South
Los Angeles, attended USC and produced the A&E documentary “L.A. Burning:
The Riots 25 Years Later” in 2017.

He also co-created the FX series “Snowfall,”
about the 1980s crack cocaine epidemic in Los Angeles.
Its third season is scheduled to premiere in July, FX executives say.
Singleton’s name will remain in the credits, according to TMZ.com.

It was Singleton’s directorial
debut with “Boyz n the Hood,” for which he also wrote the screenplay, that
defined his career. He received Oscar nominations for best director and best
original screenplay. He was the first African American ever nominated for the
best-director Oscar, as well as being the
youngest-ever nominee in the category.

“John grew up in South Central L.A.
with a love of cinema that showed itself
early on,” said a family statement issued after his death. “He went on to become
one of the most lauded graduates of the USC School of Cinematic Arts.

“Within months of graduating, John
returned to South Central to shoot his
debut feature, ‘Boyz n the Hood.’ The movie, which was unusually shot in sequence, masterfully captured a story of
friendship, youth and the peril of hard choices in a community marred by gang
violence.”

The family noted that Singleton took pride in
providing opportunities to new talent, including Tupac
Shakur, Regina King, Cuba Gooding Jr., Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson.

“One of the greatest ever to do
it,” King wrote on her Instagram page. “Thank you God for blessing us with this
gift better known as John Singleton. Having trouble finding enough words to
share just what you mean to me. Will always love you John! Your spirit will
forever shine bright.”

Singleton’s family noted that “like many African Americans,
Singleton quietly struggled with hypertension. More than 40% of
African-American men and women have high blood pressure, which also develops
earlier in life and is usually more severe. His family wants to share the
message with all to please recognize the
symptoms by going to Heart.org.”

Singleton is survived by his mother, Sheila Ward;
his father, Danny Singleton; and his children
Justice, Maasai, Hadar, Cleopatra, Selenesol, Isis and Seven.

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